photographing vultures

On Assignment in Africa

I love vultures. They may be ugly and aggressive and have fairly grotesque feeding habits but if you can see past that you'll realise they are utterly wonderful. They are the cleaners, the under takers of the plains. They consume more meat than all the other scavengers and predators combined. This makes them hugely important to the eco-system of the african plains. They are in serious trouble though, currently one of the fastest dealing family of birds in the world. Their population collapse in Africa is happening now and is catastrophic. Documenting this demise is hugely important to me. Take a look at the interview below by clicking on the picture.

Vultures for NGM

To see the gallery of the images shot for the National Geographic Magazine assignment CLICK HERE. If you have a subscription to National Geographic online and want to read the full article written by Elizabeth Royte CLICK HERE. It's a very well written and powerful piece of writing. And here's a powerful news story about vultures and the wider issue of poisoning in Africa that's worth a read CLICK HERE.

ON ASSIGNMENT

Click on the image above to read a blog I did for National Geographic about photographing vultures for the January 2016 issue of the magazine. The images were shot across Africa. Cameras I used to shoot the article included - Canon 1DX, Canon 1D MK4, Leica M, Panasonic Lumix, Sony RX100 MK2

BBC Film

Here's a clip from a film I made for the BBC a few years ago. It was making this film that cemented my love for vultures. We travelled across Kenya and Tanzania to make this film about vultures and their plight. It was shot by me, Aidan Woodward (who directed it) and Hector Skevington-Postles. With the help of the wonderful Simon Thomsett.